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North Texas Bike Lanes Going ‘Green’ For Safety

FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – The City of Fort Worth is hoping a little paint will make bicyclists safer in their city. The city is painting bike lanes green. The green-color will highlight areas where vehicle lanes and bike lanes cross.

City leaders say the green-colored lanes are meant to alert drivers to yield to those on bikes.

The bike lane at 12th Street and Commerce will be the first in North Texas to have the green pavement markings.

“It’s gonna be sort of a test there, so that we’re gonna really study to see if it makes a difference in safety,” City of Fort Worth spokesman Bill Begley explained.

The green lanes mean that when approaching the colored bike lanes motorists should check their blind spots for bicycles and yield to them, and also allow the cyclist to pass before making a turn.

“We want to make sure that cyclists are safe and that we have drivers who are aware of the fact that they’re on the road,” Begley said. “That will improve safety for everybody.”

City officials say the ‘green’ lanes are also a focus on the environment and they hope the additional safety steps will encourage residents to use alternative forms of transportation.

The green-colored bike lanes have been instituted and very successful in a number of cities across the country, including Austin.